State lawmakers react to events in Charlottesville

COLUMBIA - Several of Missouri's legislators responded Wednesday to the violence from Charlottesville over the weekend.

KOMU 8 News contacted the offices of Gov. Eric Greitens, both U.S. senators and representatives for districts that cover mid-Missouri.

A spokesperson for Greitens declined further comment on Charlottesville and pointed to a statement made by the governor on his Facebook page.

"After this weekend's event - seeing the ugliness of neo-Nazi's, white supremacists, and anti-Semitism - it's more important than ever that we come together and live those values and stand with friends who do the same," Greitens said in the post.

"Racism is not acceptable in our society in any form and should not be tolerated," a spokesperson for Rep. Vicky Hartzler said in an email. "It is one thing to have disagreements on the validity of historical monuments but violence is not the answer. It cannot be tolerated. This is not representative of America or the values that we hold dear."

“I firmly believe racism and bigotry have no place in our nation and cannot be tolerated," a spokesperson for Rep. Luetkemeyer said. "We must come together as Americans to denounce senseless acts of hate and violence like those that happened over the weekend.”

"The hate on display in Charlottesville is ugly and morally repugnant," Sen. Claire McCaskill said in a statement released Saturday. "It is the essence of anti-American. Shame on them."

Sen. Roy Blunt and Rep. Graves did not respond to requests for comments.